Joshua Cockerham

A cartoon ‘Peanuts’ is the basis of it, created after comic books by Charles M. Schulz. Initially, Clark Gesner wrote a collection of songs, focusing on animation picture with his favorite characters. He had problems with copyright, but after sending a few created songs to C. M. Schulz’s consideration, he was given permission to use the images of the characters. In 1966, the album was recorded. On the advice of producer Arthur Whitelaw, composer rewrote it into a musical. Originally published in the late 1940s, stories about the company of small children were liked by many readers. The maximum interest in comics and cartoons with these characters appeared in the 1960ies. It is not surprising that the new musical was very successful – the histrionics was exhibited for four years. The audience appreciated the quality of performance. But Broadway show has not caused interest of spectators – the show was closed after a month of running. At the end of the XX century, there was an attempt to revive public interest to the ‘peanut company’ –Charlie Brown and his friends called themselves like that. The show of 1967 has been subjected to severe re-arranging. Two new songs were added, and the sound of the orchestra was completely changed. Director Michael Mayer was engaged in the creation of dialogues. Despite the high-quality arrangements, the musical did not get much recognition on Broadway. Some critics felt the show was congested and had lost the ease of original story. Many reviewers have noted the skills of Kristin Chenoweth, who played Sally. Production of 2016 was different from previous performances with the fact that all the characters on the stage were played by the young actors. Those who came to watch with the children, followed the story of the show with the same interest. Critics also appreciated the skills of young actors. Many performances were evaluated differently by the public. Two shows were marked by a number of awards and nominations. The original production received two Drama Desk awards in 1967. The musical was awarded with Outer Critics Circle, Theatre World, and the Clarence Derwent awards. In 1968, the show was nominated for Grammy. Broadway’s version of 1999 received the Clarence Derwent Award. The play won in 3 categories out of the 5 presented at Drama Desk in 1999 and in the same year it received 2 out of four nominations at Outer Critics Circle and Tony. In 2000, production was nominated at Grammy. Minimum box office on Broadway was received in the first week of the tryouts – 54,616 dollars. The maximum amount – $268,714 – organizers received at the beginning of April 1999. Despite the fact that the heroes of ‘peanut company’ were not too popular, they were wonderful specimens of revealing the problems and needs of the young generation. After watching this show, parents can understand their children better.